Monday, May 31, 2010

Last week, I attended Social Media Junction - NZ's biggest event on the topic du jour. One of the keynote speakers, Aisha Hillary of SBS.com.au played a video loaded with factoids and trivia... which stuck in my mind.

Social Media is all about conversations and Socialnomics is the new economy. See the clip and you'll know what got millions of them started.

Is Social Media a fad... or a phenomenon?

For the skeptics out there, the above compilation is credited to Erik Qualman, who offers data sources in his book and website... SocialNomics.

If, like me, you enjoy UGC (user-generated content) without getting too caught up in it, you must check out the fascinating Did You Know videos. Pure brain-candy!

Thursday, May 27, 2010

Using a car as a mouse - to establish the new Toyota iQ is nimble as... make that a wicked genius of a guerilla / experiential promo idea !!!!!

Toyota iQ: techy hi-5 with ambient wi-fi

One of the sexiest ideas I've seen in NZ, I'd like to doff my hat first to the creative team, Matt Page & Carolyn Davis; and then to the geeks (with freaky iQs) at Saatchi & Saatchi - Peter Mangin and certified IT Ninja, Matthew Marsh who coded & created this to make it possible.

I've always said technology is a cool tool, but it's what you do with it that makes all the difference. Basically, the guys re-created a giant-scale computer that treats the Toyota IQ as a wireless mouse.

By mounting a webcam high atop a large screen, creating an Infra-Red motion-sensor field, fixing a green LED (see comment below) on the car that talks to the cam... and writing the software that tracks the Toyota iQ's movements as a mouse. Nimble? Yes. Simple? No way, Jose.

Friday, May 21, 2010

Love the flavour of football advertising? Then get ready for a season of awesome ads as the world's top brands vie off-the-field to cash in on the world's greatest sporting event. Kicking off with...

Nike Football unveils an action-packed short that brings together some of the world’s greatest players to inspire football lovers and sports fans everywhere. The epic 3-minute “Write the Future” film takes people on a journey that dramatically captures that one moment of sporting passion when headlines are written from a single pass, or one strike can bring a nation eternal happiness, while bringing others to their knees.

If netting eyeballs was their ultimate end, Nike just scored a major gooooooooal!

The short film will be aired on TV for the first time on May 22 during the European Club Final. Directed by renowned Hollywood director/ producer Alejandro G. Iñarritu (21 Grams, Babel), this epic football journey unfolds through a match of goal line clearances, game-winning tackles and lightning footwork that literally send a ripple effect across the world.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Diski is South African slang for football. Diski is the dance specially devised for 2010 FIFA World Cup by choreographer Wendy Ramokgadi.

Among the brightest ideas from around the world I've seen all year, it binds the whole nation into one big marketing team for the sporting event, boosting their tourism, talent, ticket sales and of course, morale.

All the rage in South Africa and surrounding nations, Diski Dance will soon spread to the rest of the world as it is performed in front of a global audience during the FIFA World Cup Opening Ceremony on June 11.

The South African football team have learnt the dance, cabinet ministers have learnt the dance, and every official related to the 2010 FIFA World Cup... from stadium security, cleaners and coaches have learnt the DD.

Here's an excerpt from the South African Tourism site, and I've got to say... their spirit, the song and the dance moves are infectious:

What is Diski?

In South Africa, we have a different way of playing soccer. It's rhythmic, sometimes showy, but never boring. We call it Diski and it is uniquely South African. In Diski, every move has a name and there are different names from different parts of the country. Some are in Tswana, others Zulu, Sotho and even English. The moves have names like Tsamaya", "Heel Extension Mkhari" and "Chester" to mention a few.

We've put these five moves together to create a dance that is uniquely South African.

Start learning the soccer-based moves of South Africa's Diski dance and you'll start feeling the rhythm of African football - and the energy and passion that's in store for the world at the 2010 FIFA World Cup™.

Saturday, May 8, 2010

This one's a side-splitter. One of the most awarded viral ads of all time, this is from 2006, back when people were still figuring what a viral was.

The commercial was developed by BTS United Oslo (a WPP Company), and originally pointed to a website where people could download it and send it to their friends, as well as navigate to Berlitz Norway. The response was so large, Berlitz had to shut down the site.

Goes to show that even well-worn cliches will work with a clever story built around them. What happens when a newbie Coast Guard hotline operator is confronted with a 'May Day' in his first minute on the job? Classic!